Interview by Rui Pastorin
Macau is a very special place to local contemporary artist Julia Lam Tsz Kwan. And in her latest exhibition “Hua of Casa” at the Mandarin Oriental lobby, she hopes to tell Macau’s story through not only its places, but the city’s colours.
This is all done using her signature art style employing the superflat* aesthetic, with the resulting works blending imagination, history and memory.
Marking the second in Lam’s “Superflat” series, the exhibition features pieces created between 2025 and 2026, Lam told the Post in a recent interview at the hotel.
Breaking down its title, Lam noted that “Hua” is derived from the word “hue”, or colour spectrum, as well as the Chinese words 華 (Huá) and 花 (Huā). Directly translated, the former carries definitions like “splendid”, “flower” and “China”, while the latter refers to “flower” or “blooming plant. “Casa”, meanwhile, is the Portuguese word for home.
Aside from depicting gates and local landmarks, the works also incorporate nature to point out how it is not separate from architecture and culture, along with noting changes in the city’s greenery. Hoping to highlight aspects that make Macau unique, she also includes what she called “hidden gems”, particularly local gates, that she believes are worth visiting.
This stems back to how the Superflat series began: “I started searching for hidden gems in Macau, like doors, gates, the Red Market, which really brings me good memories” while also being silent witnesses to history and change, perhaps even over hundreds of years.
“They have stories and I think we need someone to tell them. And I wish my colours can tell their stories. Since starting the first piece, the Red Market, I’ve had a mission to accomplish: I have to tell people what the colour of Macau is”, she pointed out.
The gems are still there
In finding inspiration, Lam set off by doing one of the things she loves doing in her hometown: going for a walk.
During these excursions, Lam said that her route often included places that she grew up seeing, and she started noticing a few things: “I went across the alleys and I could start counting how many changes there were”, wanting to bring attention to what has changed or even what is already gone.
One of the places that stood out to her the most was the Suzhou style moon gate at Lou Lim Ieoc Garden, which, aside from appreciating its aesthetics and history, was place she loved going around when she was little. Nowadays however, Lam thinks that not many people walk around the garden or appreciate its beautiful moon gate, wanting to bring attention to it. As she continued on her walks, Lam also began connecting other areas within walking distance.
The arch at the Barrier Gate checkpoint is also another area that makes an appearance in Lam’s artwork, noting that while it is now in yellow, she remembers a time when it was pink, suddenly just noticing the change while crossing the border as an adult.
Once she knew what she wanted to paint and feature, she started conducting research, studying aspects ranging from the architects behind these designs to when it was built down to the building methods and history behind it, as well as how the story continues to unfold today.
Sketching, the colours and their combinations came next. And beyond pieces depicted from memory or history, Lam also mixes in imagination in some pieces, noting that this is evident in the blues of the piece showing the moon gate at Lou Lim Ieoc Garden.
Knowing Macau ‘in a different way’
Through the exhibition, Lam said she hopes that people in Macau can also be encouraged to explore Macau’s hidden gems and start to talk about, protect and make good use of them, also wishing for tourists and locals to “know Macau in a different way”. This means also acknowledging not only the city’s lively entertainment aspect, but that culture and the most valuable things can also be found within its streets and alleys.
Moreover, she noted that art is a great way to tell a story, while culture is a strong language to engage in dialogue with others, hoping to encourage others to learn more about Macau and its many hidden gems.
This also ties into what Lam said is the biggest lesson she’s learnt throughout making this series, which is having an appreciation for one’s homeland. And as an artist, she hopes to be able to make something that the next generation can see and be proud of.
*The “superflat” concept and postmodern art movement was introduced by Japanese artist Takashi Murakami in 2000, who critiqued Japanese consumer culture through flattened forms: https://www.macaupostdaily.com/news/23092 .
Julia Lam Tsz Kwan poses in front of some of her works displayed at the Mandarin Oriental, Macau lobby in Nape after a recent Post interview. – Photos: Rui Pastorin
